Congressman says he'll call hearing on court ruling

Thursday

Feb 26, 2009 at 12:01 AM

and GEORGE BRENNAN

STEPHANIE VOSK

and GEORGE BRENNAN

The chairman of a congressional committee that oversees American Indian issues said Wednesday he will call a hearing on the repercussions of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that could derail the Mashpee Wampanoag's quest to build a casino.

A hearing before the House panel could be the first step toward a congressional reaction to Tuesday's decision by the high court, which found the U.S. Department of Interior doesn't have the authority to take land into federal trust for American Indian tribes recognized after 1934.

"While the full ramifications of this decision are not yet known, it has the potential to throw a shroud over the sovereign nature of land held by untold numbers of Indian tribes," U.S. Rep. Nick Rahall, D-West Virginia, chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, said in a statement issued Wednesday. "In the near future, I will convene my committee to hold a hearing on this most pressing issue."

No date has been set for a hearing, a spokeswoman for Rahall said.

Among expert observers and political insiders, the expectation is that Congress will move to provide relief to tribes recognized after 1934 in the wake of Tuesday's Supreme Court decision.

But what that fix might look like remained to be seen Wednesday.

The high court decision limits the ability of the Department of the Interior to take land into trust for tribes that received federal recognition after 1934, including the Mashpee Wampanoag.

The Masphee tribe, recognized in 2007, has applied to put 140 acres in Mashpee and 539 acres in Middleboro into federal trust as an initial reservation. The Middleboro land would be used for an Indian casino and the application is subject to approval by the Secretary of the Interior.

Tuesday's ruling does not affect the state's only other federally recognized tribe, the Aquinnah Wampanoag of Martha's Vineyard, because its 400 acres was put into trust by an act of Congress.

Likewise, both of the federally recognized tribes in Connecticut, which operate Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods, have land in federal trust through congressional acts, exempting that land from the ruling.

Kathryn Rand, an Indian gaming expert at the University of North Dakota, said Congress will likely use this opportunity to amend controversial aspects of Indian casinos, including "reservation shopping."

Under the 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, federally recognized tribes are allowed to offer gambling on land taken into trust. Critics have said tribes, driven by deep-pocketed investors, choose land outside of their home base in pursuit of profits.

Matthew Fletcher, an Indian law expert at Michigan State University, said there is precedence for Congress stepping in after a Supreme Court ruling.

"I'm absolutely sure that Indian tribes and tribal organizations are going to be pushing pretty hard for some sort of Carcieri (v. Salazar) fix," he said.

As of Wednesday afternoon, spokesmen for the Senate and House committees that oversee Indian issues had not announced a course of action.

The federal Bureau of Indian Affairs has still not taken an official position on the Supreme Court decision.

Spokesmen for the state's two U.S. senators said Wednesday they're still reviewing the court's ruling.

Contact Stephanie Vosk at svosk@capecodonline.com and George Brennan at gbrennan@capecodonline.com